1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to items of jewelry, and in particular to a modular simulated gem and gem setting jewelry arrangement.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Unitary jewelry items and/or modular links for forming jewelry bracelets, necklaces, pendants, and rings are well known. The so-called tennis bracelet, for example, is a bracelet having a series of connected modular units, each unit comprising an actual diamond or other gem and a setting therefor.
Reference is made to the following U.S. patents:
Reference is also made to prior U.S. patent applications of the inventor of the present invention as follows: patent application Ser. No. 07/572,678, filed Aug. 23, 1990 for xe2x80x9cBRACELET DESIGNxe2x80x9d, which is a continuation application of Design application Ser. No. 397,094 filed Aug. 22, 1989 entitled xe2x80x9cBRACELET OR THE LIKExe2x80x9d; and patent application Ser. No. 09/224,936 filed Dec. 31 1998 entitled xe2x80x9cDECORATIVE JEWELRY ITEMxe2x80x9d.
Non-patent references of interest may include:
1. xe2x80x9cCharmsxe2x80x9d catalog, Page 136, Item #136-20, by Americas GOLD, 650 South Hill St., Los Angeles, Calif. 90014
2. xe2x80x9cLiberty Collectionsxe2x80x9d catalog, Pages 4 and 21, by Liberty I. Exchange, 333 Washington St. #203-1, Boston, Mass. 02108;
3. xe2x80x9cDiamond Flowerxe2x80x9d jewelry by SandR Designs, Inc., Marlton, N.J.;
4. Items #P10529, #84619, #84622, National Jeweler, May 16, 1997;
5. Janet Alix necklace, Jewelers"" Circular Keystone, May, 1997;
6. Catalog Item #4D, Skalet Gold, 3600 N. Talman Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60618
7. Caroline Ballou Collection, June Las Vegas Show, K25-K27, and Barnett Robinson, Inc. June Las Vegas Show, Galleria #10;
8. Item N362, P.Q.C. Jewelry, National Jeweler, Jun. 1, 1998, Page 142;
9. xe2x80x9cLove Tearsxe2x80x9d collection, by Studs, Inc., 42 W. 48 St., New York, N.Y. 10036;
10. Slide pendant, by Superior Diamond Cutters Inc., 589 Fifth Ave., New York, N.Y. 10017;
11. Uni-Creation, Inc., Emby International, Inc. collection, 589 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10017;
12. A Promotional Supplement To JCK, May 1997, Pages 178, 179;
13. Item SS424, Corona Jewellery Company, 16 Ripley Ave., Toronto, Ontario, M6S 3N9, Canada;
14. xe2x80x9cBezel-set jewelry, California Gold Center, 606 S. Hill St., Los Angeles, Calif. 90014;
15. xe2x80x9cPartnersxe2x80x9d fashion jewelry, Cache fashion watches, Mervyn""s California catalog flyer, 1998, Page 11;
16. California Precision Products Co. Catalog xe2x80x9cLaser Spot-Welding Systemsxe2x80x9d, One Industrial Court, Riverside, R.I. 02915;
17. Maty, Collection Automnexe2x80x94Hiver 97-98, Valeur 30F, No. 76.
The jewelry items shown and described in the prior art noted above take on various aesthetically pleasing forms for displaying gems, real or simulated, in a variety of visual and structural configurations.
Channel settings and bezel settings that use real gems increase the price of a jewelry item dramatically.
In all such items of the prior art in which a gem or simulated gem is mounted in a gem setting, the gem or simulated gem is positioned brought down from above the setting and secured in place. In assembling the gem and gem setting combination, typically a series of upwardly directed prongs project from the setting, also referred to as a xe2x80x9cbasexe2x80x9d, and the gemstone, or simulated gemstone, is lowered to fit within the upwardly extending prongs, after which the series of prongs are bent inwardly and downwardly to embrace the gem or simulated gem. While this configuration displays the gem in the foreground relative to the setting, there are many disadvantages to such construction.
In particular, with the prongs of the setting exposed, it is relatively easy to snag clothing or inflict minor injuries to the skin of a person by an inadvertent scraping action. Moreover, the prongs of the setting base are unsightly, detracting from the aesthetic qualities of the item of jewelry.
If one were to conceive of the idea of avoiding the unsightliness of upwardly extending gem mounting prongs, the idea would be quickly rejected, due to the fact that if a precious stone, for example a diamond or ruby, is mounted below the upper surface of the setting base, the pointed bottom of the stone would penetrate the skin of the user even more so than is commonly done even with stones mounted from the top of a setting base or bezel. The pointed bottom of a precious stone is, by design, formed with specific depth and angles to capture as much light as possible for reflection through the stone, thereby enhancing the brilliance and spectacle of the gem.
Yet another disadvantage of the use of prior art unitary modules for connection in series to form a tennis bracelet, for example, is that such bracelet construction is rather labor intensive, each modular unit having to be connected to an adjacent unit, and for a bracelet with, typically thirty or more, individual modules, the cost of the bracelet to the ultimate consumer may be inflated beyond expectation of the purchaser who values the item of jewelry on the basis of its precious stone content. Typical prong, channel, and bezel settings not only use expensive gems that sometimes get damaged during the setting procedure, but these types of settings themselves are costly. The purchaser would be greatly benefitted by a less costly manufacturing process, since, for the same purchase price, the purchaser would receive more or larger stones, simulated or real. Such simulated or real stones of a greater quality. There is therefore a need in the art for reducing the manufacturing costs of multi-modular jewelry items.
One solution to avoid employing upwardly extending gem mounting prongs is found in the aforementioned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/224,936 in which a gem or simulated gem is inserted from below into a hollow base member having a top bezel with and opening therein to expose the gem or simulated gem below.
The present invention satisfies the needs and desires of the purchasing public while simultaneously solving the afore-mentioned problems associated with jewelry items in which the gem is mounted above the setting using upwardly protruding prongs. The invention thus solves the same problems as does the aforementioned ""936 patent application, but in a different way, while offering certain additional features not found in the ""936 application.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a decorative jewelry item, comprising: a hollow base member having a decorative top; a cap with an opening therein; and a cap attachment arrangement for attaching the cap to the hollow base member with at least a portion of the decorative top being viewable through the cap opening.
The decorative top may be integral with the base member, or it may be defined by a top surface on the base member with a separate decorative object fixed to such top surface.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a decorative jewelry item, comprising: a base member having a hollow interior, a top with an opening therein leading to the hollow interior, a bottom, and a sidewall extending from the top to the bottom, the sidewall having an opening therein leading to the hollow interior; a decorative insert configured and sized in relation to the base member to be inserted within the hollow interior through the sidewall opening and viewable through the top opening; and a retainer for retaining said decorative insert within said base member hollow interior.
In one preferred embodiment of the invention, the base member is segmented, defining a plurality of base member segments each having a decorative top, fixedly connected together side-by-side. Similarly, the cap is segmented, defining a like plurality of cap segments each having an opening therein, fixedly connected together side-by-side; and the cap attachment means is adapted to attach the segmented cap to the segmented base member with at least a portion of each decorative top being viewable through the cap openings.
The invention embodies both the construction or constructions of a decorative jewelry item as well as the method or methods for making a decorative jewelry item.
It will be appreciated that, in accordance with the principles and concepts of the present invention, since the decorative object, decorative insert, or simulated decorative object or insert, is typically positioned below the top of the decorative jewelry item and above the bottom of the base member, snagging of clothing, and penetration of the user""s skin is avoided. Unlike real gems, the simulated gem of the present invention does not extend below the bottom of the base member in which it is contained.
In another aspect of the invention, there is provided a plurality of such decorative jewelry items joined together. For example, a pair of such decorative jewelry items may be joined together in the manufacturing process so that the number of individual modular units to be assembled, to form a tennis bracelet for example, is halved.
The present invention also provides for a number of selectable structural configurations and mounting processes, depending on need, desired security for a mounted gem or simulated gem, and aesthetic considerations.